Last Pages of This Chapter in Our Life

Life is a story, and in a few short days, one chapter of our life’s story will end and another will begin as we gather at a La Crosse, Wisconsin park to witness the marriage of son number two to the young lady God has created perfectly for him. It is hard to believe a year has passed since we were announcing the exciting news of Garrett and Abigail’s engagement. You may recall that Garrett proposed to Abby on a Nassau beach last June while they were visiting us and attending Logan’s high school graduation. The year has flown by, and now we are about to welcome another daughter into our family.

This past week, we were up at the north shore of Minnesota enjoying a few days of one-on-one time with Garrett. The days alone with our son were so sweet. We were able to share Garrett’s favorite pass time (hockey) with him as we visited the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in Eveleth, MN, enjoy hikes around Gooseberry Falls State Park and Split Rock Light House State Park, and visit Canal Park of Duluth, MN. Of course who can forget the delicious pie at the world famous “Betty’s Pies” of Two Harbors, MN.

We left sunny, warm Minneapolis on Thursday morning, and…

…arrived in very chilly, foggy Duluth.

We had lunch at Grandma’s Saloon, and then toured Canal Park.

After touring Canal Park, we drove north about an hour to Cove Point Lodge.

Our hike around the resort brought us to these really cool Adirondack Chairs.

On Saturday, we toured Split Rock Light House…

…and Gooseberry Falls State Park.

We had breath taking views of Lake Superior.

The trip was short, but memories and final bonding time with our son were sweet. With the trip now over, we can begin focusing on the last few days of wedding preparations.

To Garrett and Abigail: we are excited for you as you begin this next chapter of your life together and thereby usher us into the next chapter of our lives. We love you, support you, and pray that God blesses your union and guides you on your journey together. We love you both!

To the rest of you: stay tuned for the next blog update. We are sure we will have wedding pictures to share!

Ministry Update

As we speak, a mission team with Mission Discovery is at Camp being served by the staff in our absence. We hosted three mission teams in May.

AMSA from Florida Atlantic University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

The young people from FAU did blood pressure screenings at the mall and served at Princess Margaret Hospital and Bahamas Association of Physically Disabled. The team is comprised of college students that are a part of American Medical Student Association.

SoFree from University of Mobile in Mobile, Alabama

The mission team from the University of Mobile was a first of its kind for ALC&C. SoFree is a music ensemble that travels around to churches, schools, and other ministries sharing their beautiful musical talent. They ministered at Bahamas Association of the Physically Disabled, the Emergency Hostel, Camp’s Youth Night, Adventure Learning Centre, and Ebenezer Baptist Church. We were extremely blessed to have them in the Bahamas.

Life Church from Richmond, Virginia

The young adult group from Life Church in Richmond, VA was led by Vernon Gordon who had come back in February and stayed with us during a scouting trip. The team came for 5 days and worked hard serving the children at the Emergency Hostel and Bahamas Association of Physically Disabled. They also worked on projects at the ALC&C.

Youth Outreach

Friday night Youth Outreach at Camp continues. We usually average about 10-20 young people a night, but a youth group from a local church joined us at Camp this last Friday and we had close to 50 young people. Praise the Lord! We have enjoyed getting to know the young people that come. Those that helps us with the outreach have done such a fantastic job. We are so thankful for their hard work and dedication.

Facilities Update

New Generator

Thanks to a generous donor (you know who you are), we were able to purchase a generator to replace the one outside the dining hall that quit working earlier this year. If you follow our blogs and Facebook page, you know we have been having challenges with electricity. Power outages are random and frequent and without a generator, we struggle to do our work and serve our mission teams. Power is needed to operate the wells, keep the food refrigerated, and allow us to communicate with mission teams. The new generator will service the dining hall building and the well in the bath house.

Cabin

Work continues on plans for a new cabin. It is in the board’s hands now, but we hope to have the go ahead soon so we can start construction soon.

Maintenance Projects

The building that houses Tim’s office and a couple of apartments has been long in need of new siding. As with all wood products in our climate, the office siding has become victim to termites, carpenter ants and moisture. Thank you, Life Church (picture above) for all the work you did on the office building!

Bob has been busy with other projects around Camp as well. We appreciate all the hard work he does. Not only is it hard work, it is hard work in high heat and humidity.

Staff Update

Good-bye, Sam!

Good-bye, Megan!

Good-bye, Sam and Megan! Two of our short term missionary staff have left the island. Knowing these days would come did not make it any easier to say good-bye. These two young ladies added a lot to the ministry. We are so thankful for all they did to further the Kingdom of God. Eternity alone will tell the impact for the cause of Christ these two ladies have made in the Bahamas.

Yes, we have had some sad good-byes, but we also have an introduction to make. We are pleased to introduce Denize to you. He is our new Camp Grounds Keeper. He has been doing a fantastic job and has such a good attitude and work ethic. Camp is beautiful, and we are thrilled to have him on board.

You may recall that a friend of ours has come to Nassau on 3 occasions to test the waters to see if ministry at ALC&C would be a good fit for him. After much prayer and consideration, Aaron Mills has felt God is indeed calling him to join us at ALC&C and is now working towards that goal. Please pray with us for him as he makes plans and preparations. He will help with technical issues and maintenance projects.

Facilitator staff needed

With Megan and Sam’s departure and the departure of a couple paid Bahamian staff, the Centre is in need of facilitator staff for next school year. If you or someone you know would like to serve the Lord for a year in the Bahamas, is able to work and share the love of Jesus and the Gospel with children, please let us know. We have just the place.

Seeley Family Update

The kiddos all tower over Mindy now. Tim is not in this picture because he had not yet arrived in Minnesota.

Of course the biggest event in our lives right now is Garrett to Abby’s wedding. After they are married, they will live in Hutchinson, MN (1 1/2 hours west of the Twin Cities). Abby will continue her occupational therapy job, and Garrett will be looking for work in the area as well as preparing to restart college classes.

Logan successfully completed his first year of college at University of Minnesota. He did very well and has been working in the IT department at University of Minnesota. He will be joining us in Nassau for nearly 3 weeks in August. We look forward to his visit.

Zachary successfully completed his 11th grade year of high school (except a few more lessons in math) where he took several online college courses. He will be traveling to the US again later this summer where he will be working for Mindy’s parents for a couple weeks to help them put up wood for the winter.

Andrew and Katie are doing well. Katie is finishing her first year as kindergarten teacher at Shannon Park Elementary School in Rosemount, MN, but will not be returning next year due to layoffs (system policy is last in/first out). We are praying that God leads her to the right position for next year. Andrew is in a new position at his job with Wells Fargo and works a lot of overtime.

Tim has been very busy juggling many projects and leadership responsibilities and Mindy continues to assist him wherever he needs her. With Janice now at Camp to assist Judi with kitchen/housekeeping duties, Mindy’s role at Camp is in transition away from oversight of kitchen/housekeeping to more of a personal support and assistant to Tim. Things remain in flux, but with major changes and growing at the ministry, there is never a shortage of things to do both at home and at the ministry.

Praises and Prayer Requests

Praise and Prayer Requests can be accessed on the tab above or simply click thelink here.

We are not employed by Adventure Learning Centre and Camp. The work we do here in the Bahamas is exclusively funded by the generous support of individuals and churches. If you feel led to do so, you may partner with us and support our ministry work by clicking on the “Shepherds Staff Mission Facilitators” logo in the side bar of this page and following the instructions. All donations are tax deductible. Thank you for your prayers and generosity. May God bless you!